Home hydrangea (Hydrángea) is an incredibly beautiful plant that can grow to a height of 1.5 m, however, not on every site it survives and develops well. To understand why a flower grows poorly or too slowly, you need to analyze the way to care for the plant and eliminate the most common mistakes in growing.
Causes of Poor Hydrangea Growth
Gardeners with experience can immediately name a few of the most important factors affecting hydrangea both from the inside and from the outside. Usually, a large-leaved or garden variety of a flower is grown at home, but with great care, absolutely any variety can be grown.
The main reasons for the absence or inhibition of flower growth are improper lighting, insufficient or excessive watering, deficiency of fertilizers or incorrect application of nutrients to the soil, as well as a violation of the composition of the land in which hydrangea grows.
Important! The large-leaved view is ideal for growing on a balcony, window sill in a room or kitchen. The plant loves sunlight, so usually for the cultivation of bushes choose the eastern or southeastern side of the house.
Lack of sun
The photophilia of hydrangea has long been known to experienced gardeners, and the first thing that beginners do is put a flower in the most lighted place. However, this is not always good. Too bright, direct rays damage the leaves, leading to the appearance of the most common sunburn. It is very simple to notice signs of improper illumination of hydrangea: the leaves turn yellow or acquire a light green hue, turn pale.
Ideal lighting for the plant - the windows of a house or apartment, protected at noon from direct sunlight. Shading with opaque blinds or an ordinary curtain is quite allowed. The rest of the day, from early morning until lunch and from lunch to evening, hydrangea is required to receive a sufficient amount of ultraviolet radiation.
Did you know? For moisture lovingness, the plant received the Latin name meaning "vessel with water." And in Paris, hydrangea was called the "Japanese rose."
Wrong watering
Improper watering harms many types of flowers, but Hydrángea suffers as much as possible. The biggest mistake when watering: the use of hard water, that is, ordinary running or non-defended well. Soft water is water that has settled for at least five days, or rainwater, collected during a shower in a separate clean container. Temperature scale for irrigation liquid: + 15 ° С, ideal time is in the evening or in the morning. To overdry or "fill" the soil is not recommended. The optimal amount of water per adult plant (older than 1 year) is 1.8 liters per day.
Young Hydrángea love drip irrigation, which is why recently bought and delivered plants are watered neatly and in small portions, pouring liquid into the root zone. Irrigation from a watering can or spray gun is undesirable, since in the summer it threatens to burn on leaves and inflorescences, and in winter increases the likelihood of rot.
Top dressing
Both deficit and excess fertilizer equally harm the living shrub. Nutrient additives for hydrangeas, of course, can be made independently at home, but it is easier to buy ready-made ones, for example, Agrecol, Biogrand, Biopon and others. They are introduced into the soil according to the instructions: granules are mixed into the soil, and liquid fertilizers are added to water for irrigation. Sometimes, even with proper nutrition, hydrangea does not bloom or grow too slowly. In this case, you should pay attention to other indicators of the plant.
Soil acidity
Unsuitable soil is the reason for the lack of normal flower development. Hydrangeas love acidic soil, but in alkaline they wither or simply do not take root. It is better to plant a decorative shrub in a land rich in iron, humus or chernozem are also poorly suited for hydrangeas.
If the soil is poor in iron, it is enriched with copper sulfate (10 l of water is added per 1 m², in which 1 tsp of vitriol is bred). After such enrichment with useful substances, the earth can be added to pots for indoor hydrangeas.Important! For breeding at home, a standard ready-made soil for this type of plant is suitable. At the bottom of flower pots, drainage (small pebbles) is required.
Why hydrangea does not grow tall
The main reasons for the lack of growth in height are:
- a small amount of sunlight;
- insufficient quality soil;
- the presence of diseases in neighboring colors;
- problems with the root system;
- poor ventilation of the room and proximity with a large number of other colors (hydrangeas need space and a distance from the other green inhabitants of the house at least 20 cm on each side);
- cropping that was performed incorrectly.
Why does not hydrangea take root
If the plant does not take root, the reason may be as follows:
- not acidic soil;
- a small amount of nutrients in the soil;
- due to excessive watering, the roots rot;
- fungus or ticks, as well as any other diseases;
- the pot is on the north side, the sun does not fall on it;
- the seedling was initially infected.
Did you know? "Japanese rose" without treatment with boiling water will fade almost immediately after a cut. A freshly cut shoot to the inflorescence level is placed in boiling water for 30 seconds - then the branch will not wither for several days.
Problem Solving Methods
To eliminate all the above problems, Indoor Hydrángea is grown according to the rules: with moderate, accurate watering, with periodic fertilizer application in the spring. It is advisable to avoid drafts by all means, remove pots from direct sunlight in summer and do not water hydrangea with hard water.
Transplant this beautiful flower every year in the fall, after flowering. Usually, a transplant is performed with an earthen lump, but if the soil does not meet the standards, it is pre-harvested from a mixture of peat, turf, sand and sheet land. Sand needs to be added half as much as other components. The roots of the plant are inspected for damage, and then disinfected with water and manganese (2 g of manganese crystals are added to 1 liter of water).
Subject to all recommendations for growing and caring for Hydrángea at home, even an inexperienced gardener will receive a beautiful, strong plant. It will delight with bright colors and sophisticated appearance from June to September.